Usefulness of the cachexia index as a prognostic indicator for patients with gastric cancer

Aim: Cachexia is associated with the morbidity and mortality of cancer patients. The cachexia index (CXI) is a novel biomarker of cachexia associated with the prognosis for certain cancers. This study analyzed the relationship between CXI with long-term outcomes of gastric cancer patients.Methods: We included 175 gastric cancer patients who underwent curative gastrectomy at our hospital between January 2011 and October 2019. The CXI was calculated using skeletal muscle index, serum albumin level, and neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio. The prognostic value of CXI was investigated by univariate and multivariate Cox hazard regression models adjusting for potential confounders.Results: In the multivariate analyses, tumor location (hazard ratio [HR], 0.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 0.11-0.49; p < 0.01), disease stage (HR, 15.4; 95% CI, 4.18-56.1; p < 0.01), and low CXI (HR, 2.97; 95% CI, 1.01-8.15; p = 0.03) were independent and significant predictors of disease-free survival. Disease stage (HR, 9.88; 95% CI, 3.53-29.1; p < 0.01) and low CXI (HR, 4.07; 95% CI, 1.35-12.3; p < 0.01) were independent and significant predictors of overall survival. The low CXI group had a lower body mass index (p = 0.02), advanced disease stage (p = 0.034), and a lower prognostic nutritional index (p < 0.01).Conclusions: Cachexia index is associated with a poor prognosis for gastric cancer, suggesting the utility of comprehensive assessment using nutritional, physical, and inflammatory status.

Automated summary

This study analyzed the relationship between CXI and long-term outcomes of gastric cancer patients, and found that low CXI is an independent predictor of disease-free survival and overall survival for gastric cancer patients, suggesting the importance of comprehensive assessment of nutritional, physical, and inflammatory status in evaluating cachexia.